An endoscope is a medical instrument which allows direct observation of internal organs and insides of body cavities in a human body, and may also refer to an entire process including observation of a patient and a medical treatment procedure using the endoscope. Hereinafter, ‘endoscopy’ or ‘endoscopic procedure’ is defined as a term which refers to the observation or the medical treatment procedure of internal organs of a patient using the endoscope, and the ‘endoscopic instrument’ or ‘endoscope apparatus’ is defined as an endoscope which is a medical instrument which is used in the endoscopic procedure.
In the observation of the internal organs and the insides of the body cavities in the human body through the endoscopic procedure, a site where the observation is the most difficult is the intestine tenue which may be referred to as the small bowel. This is because, unlike the stomach or the large bowel where the endoscopic procedure is mainly performed, the small bowel is not fixed to a certain part of the human body, has a long length and performs peristalsis. Therefore, it is not easy to perform the endoscopy in the small bowel, compared with other organs, and the existing endoscope has a limitation in solving such a difficulty.
Due to such a problem, a capsule endoscope is generally used for observation and diagnosis of an inside of the small bowel.
The capsule endoscope is a vitamin pill-sized endoscope which includes a lens, a light emitting element, an image recording unit, a battery, a wireless transmission unit, an antenna and so on, and a user inserts the capsule endoscope through the mouth. The capsule endoscope photographs the small bowel while moving from the mouth to the rectum, and stores the photographed images in an external recording unit through wireless communication.
However, since it is not possible to remotely control the capsule endoscope, and a photographing direction and angle are determined according to movements of the capsule endoscope, there is a limitation in the observation of the small bowel and also it is not possible to repeatedly perform a checkup. Also, since a size thereof should be minimized, it is difficult to install an additional unit, and thus it is not possible to perform a biopsy or the like.
To overcome the problems in the capsule endoscope and to perform the biopsy or a medical treatment of a corresponding area when a small bowel disease is suspected or confirmed, a double balloon endoscope has been developed. The double balloon endoscope which has been used with FDA and Korean Food and Drugs Administration (KFDA) approval since 2004 performs the endoscopy while being moved along the narrow and winding small bowel and a balloon installed at each end of an over-tube, the endoscope and the over-tube are operated. In general, since it is difficult to move along the entire small bowel having a length of about 6 m at one time, it is determined which of a mouth side and an anus side is closer to a lesion, and then the endoscopy is usually performed in one direction or twice in both directions.
Among the endoscopes developed so far, the double balloon endoscope may be most deeply inserted into the human body, and thus may effectively perform the treatment or the biopsy for the small bowel disease. However, the double balloon endoscope has some disadvantages in that a new high-priced endoscope should be purchased to perform the endoscopic procedure, a long procedural time is taken, compared with existing endoscopy, and also a high skill level of the user is required due to a high degree of difficulty in the procedure. Also, since the patient has great pain and discomfort, and the procedure using the endoscope imposes a heavy financial burden on the patient, the endoscope is not used universally.
The small bowel may be divided into a duodenum, a jejunum and an ileum from the stomach. The duodenum is firmly fixed to a posterior abdominal wall, but the jejunum and the ileum which are the majority of the small bowel are not fixed but extend long in an abdominal cavity. Due to such a structure of the small bowel, the endoscopic procedure for the small bowel may not be effectively performed even using the double balloon endoscope. To perform the endoscopy procedure, a string-shaped endoscope scope connected to a main body of the endoscope should be basically pushed and inserted into the human body. As the endoscope scope is inserted into the small bowel, the small bowel which is not fixed is pushed and stretched, and thus the patient's discomfort and pain intensify.
As another problem in the double balloon endoscope, an accessorial over-tube should be additionally used when the new endoscope is used. After the endoscope moves along the small bowel, the over-tube is pushed and inserted. At this time, use of only the over-tube has a limitation in overcoming the problem that the small bowel is pushed and stretched. Also, since a length of the over-tube is fixed and not varied, and the endoscope is used while being inserted therein, it is inconvenient for use, compared with the existing endoscope.
As described above, the double balloon endoscope may not effectively shorten the small bowel, and thus the procedural time is increased, and the patient's pain intensifies.
Therefore, an endoscope for observing the small bowel, rather than the existing procedure devices or an effective method for, observing the small bowel is required.
As the above-described endoscope for observing the small bowel, an endoscope which is invented to observe a narrow space, such as the small bowel, in the human body is disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-0471653. The registered patent relates to an endoscope system including a head part which has a camera unit installed at one side of a hollow cylindrical part, the hollow cylindrical part which is connected with a tube connected to an external device located outside a human body at the other side thereof, a front fixing part which is connected with the head part and installed at an outer circumference of the cylindrical part to be fixed to an internal wall of an organ, a rear fixing part which is installed at the outer circumference of the cylindrical part to be slidable on an outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical part and also to be fixed to the internal wall of the organ, and a moving part which elongates or contracts between the front fixing part and the rear fixing part so as to move the head part in the organ when the front fixing part or the rear fixing part fixes the head part to the internal wall of the organ.
The registered patent may theoretically observe the small bowel, but relates to a mechanical endoscope which is complicatedly operated, unlike the existing endoscope. Accordingly, even though a user is experienced in the existing endoscopic procedure, it is difficult for the user to use it, and also to actually operate it due to a risk of malfunction, and it is necessary to separately purchase a new specific endoscope, and thus it is uneconomical.
Also, the registered patent is different from the existing endoscope in the basic principle and an operation method, is incompatible therewith. In addition, it is difficult to perform various procedures such as a biopsy, removing of polyps and a styptic treatment performed in the existing endoscope procedures, and an additional apparatus is required, and thus actual utility in a clinic is limited.